In geographical terms, Banat is a region in the southern part of the vast Pannonian Plain, bordered by the rivers Mureș, Tisza, Danube, and the Transylvanian Alps. A large portion of Banat lies in Romania, a small part in Hungary, while the Yugoslavian section is located along the lower courses of the mentioned rivers.
May 24–25, 1998
Invitational Composers’ Competition
After the first invitational composers’ competition on the theme Bread, Grain, Harvest, which resulted in 14 new solo songs, the organizers of this year’s Days of Josif Marinković decided that the new theme would be Hilandar, as 1998 marked the 800th anniversary of this Serbian sanctuary.
Irrigation is one of the most important functions of the primary canal network, as it enables the distribution of water from the Tisa River into the central parts of Banat. According to project plans, the primary canal network should supply water for the irrigation of approximately 300,000 hectares in Banat. The intake of Tisa water in this region is carried out by gravity.
Drainage enables the reception of all excess water from the catchment area—either by gravity (free fall) or artificially using pumps—and evacuates it further into the main receivers: the Tisa and the Danube rivers.
The Obznana was the response of the bourgeoisie to the growing strength and influence of the Communist Party. Its goal was to secure the position of the bourgeoisie and the monarchy while preventing any legal activity of communists and the working class in general.
The most difficult year for Jedinstvo was 1933. After a generational change at the end of 1932, the club faced a weakened playing squad, while the pitch itself remained flooded until mid-June. Training sessions that schoolteacher Sava Mojić had begun regularly in the autumn of 1932 and resumed in March 1933 were interrupted as early as mid-April due to the flooded ground.
The Tisa is a major international river and the largest tributary of the Danube, flowing through four countries. Its total length is 966 km, with 164 km passing through Serbia. The river originates in the Carpathians at an altitude of 1,800 meters, but after 266 km of its upper course, near the mouth of the Samoš, it descends to just above 200 meters, gradually sloping to its confluence with the Danube.
Responsibility, ambition, and dedication marked the life and career of Dr. Milorad Drobac, Doctor of Economic Sciences.
He was born on February 11, 1948, in Bočar, where he completed elementary school as the top student of his class.
Hajnalka Zerebelji is the first female lawyer in Novi Bečej. After several decades of professional work, she has gained extensive experience, which she gladly shares with younger colleagues.
Folk songs like "Hey homesteads, I will come to you again..." or "Hey homesteads in the north of Bačka," with their exceptional melody and perhaps perfectly chosen words, awaken a longing for homesteads even in those who have never experienced their charms in reality.
Poverty and harsh working conditions forced the rural poor and proletariat to organize and fight through strikes. Although there were strikes in previous years, those in 1897 were the most massive. The center of the struggle was in Elemir, and the most significant battle took place in Potisje, in the former District, where the strike gained the most momentum in Turski Bečej, Kuman, Melenac, and especially in the Torda municipality.
The development of water management in Vojvodina, Banat, and our Novi Bečej region is presented in the following exposition as a report, or more precisely, a story about water and what people have created by living and working on and around water over the past 150 years.
On August 2, 1921, the Assembly adopted the Law on the Protection of Public Security and Order in the State, tightening measures against communists. This law prescribed harsh punishments for any communist activity, including the death penalty.
Ferenc Gomba, affectionately known by his friends and teammates as Feri or Frici, was the complete opposite in temperament to his older brother Laci. Quick, lively, and passionate, he stood out as a left winger for DMKS Turul from the very start of the 1941/42 season.
As previously highlighted, the demand for a unified approach to solving water management issues in the Danube-Tisa-Danube Hydrosystem led, on January 1, 1963, to the incorporation of water associations from the Banat and Bačka regions into the Directorate for the Construction of the Danube-Tisa-Danube Hydrosystem in Novi Sad.
In the years leading up to World War II, the Jewish community of Novi Bečej lived much like the rest of the town’s population. They did not perceive the rise of fascist movements across Europe as an immediate threat to their survival, believing that, if war broke out, they would manage like everyone else. This belief was perhaps reinforced by the fact that there were very few ethnic Germans in Novi Bečej, and anti-Semitism was not openly felt.
Pavle Janković - Šole, born on January 19, 1939, in Novi Bečej, was one of the most respected Serbian poets, whose poetry, although primarily intended for children, carried deep messages for adults as well. His name in literature is associated with an authentic and gentle approach to childhood, making him an expert in understanding children's thoughts and dreams.
The stage — the “boards that mean the world” — has been a lifelong inspiration for Saša Milenković, an actor, director, and passionate theater devotee who has dedicated his life to the art of performance.
Born in 1963, Saša stepped onto the theatrical scene in 1978 and has remained actively involved ever since, contributing immensely to the cultural and artistic life of Novi Bečej and beyond.
The Jewish community of Novi Bečej and Vranjevo had deep roots and played a significant role in the town’s economic, social, and cultural life between the two world wars.
They were merchants, doctors, craftsmen, clerks, and entrepreneurs — people who contributed to the growth of the community and whose homes and businesses were part of the daily life of Novi Bečej.
Novi Bečej, along with Vranjevo, was a prominent trading center during the era of the Great Kikinda District, particularly known for its grain export trade in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
The only prominent Jew from Novi Bečej who was not arrested at the time was Dr. Dezider Kanic, a lawyer. He made direct contact with the military commander of the town and, proving that he had served as a German "Uhlan" officer, managed to obtain permission to move to Hungary (see the testimony of Dr. Viktor Jordanić).
A considerable amount of time had passed since our trip to Šumica before we embarked on a new adventure to Matejski Brod. We were eagerly waiting for Voja Glavaški to get a bicycle so that the three of us could ride together. This anticipation lasted almost until the end of the school year. Voja finally got a Vesta-brand bicycle, just like mine, but his was newer and more stylish by two years.
"Polet," a brick and tile factory, was founded in Novi Bečej by the Bon brothers in the early 20th century. They already owned similar factories in Kikinda and Žombol, recognizing the high quality of the clay in Novi Bečej, which proved to be quite profitable for them. They began investing substantial funds into this factory as well.
I do not consider myself an expert qualified to critically evaluate the literary work of Bogdan Čiplić. However, out of respect for him and from the memories of our friendship during the last ten years of his life, I will attempt to present—in the broadest terms—what I observed of his literary output.
László Gomba appeared on the football scene of Novi Bečej at a very young age. Together with Ferik Kiš and József Čanji, he was among the group of young enthusiasts who initiated the founding of a new club in Novi Bečej in 1940, originally named Napredak. Shortly after its establishment, the club changed its name to S.K. Zanatlija, where Laci quickly secured a place in the first team and proved his footballing quality.
The only available testimony describing the living conditions in the Novi Bečej concentration camp comes from Tihomir Ungar from Novi Sad. At the time, he was a child imprisoned in the camp along with his entire family, who had been brought from Novi Kneževac to the temporary holding facility in Novi Bečej, where they awaited deportation.
In the former Novi Bečej maternity hospital, located near the Andre family home, Karolj Andre was born on July 21, 1951 — a future collector and philatelist. He was educated in Novi Bečej, Subotica, and Novi Sad, where he later worked as a laboratory technician.
Trips to the Ivanović and Rohonci estates sparked a desire for more outings. So, throughout the summer of 1937, almost every evening, after the promenade ended and the shops closed, we would go to the garden of Miloš Gavrić’s tavern. The tavern was located on a corner, across from the Workers' Home, in the house of Duško Nikolić.
All of us from Novi Bečej are well acquainted with the beautiful two-story building with an Einfort (arched passage) entrance on the main street, located between the Miloje Čiplić Elementary School and the Sakač family house. Today, on the ground floor of this building, to the left of the entrance, there is a commercial space (formerly the Trocadero café), while on the right is the headquarters of the Tourist Organization of the Municipality of Novi Bečej.
One account states that, during a brief period of partial freedom, some wealthier Jews from Novi Bečej managed to escape by bribing German soldiers—often drivers—and fleeing beyond the borders of Serbia. There is also a theory, based on unconfirmed information, that Verona, the daughter of Danijel Cigler, a timber merchant from Novi Bečej, managed to reach Romania thanks to her relationship with a German officer, and later emigrated to Israel after the war. However, this information was never officially confirmed.
